MN Supreme Court Rules BB Guns are Not Firearms

MN Supreme Court Rules BB Guns are Not Firearms

Posted By
Brockton D. Hunter

Late last year, the Minnesota Supreme Court settled an old dispute over
whether a BB gun is considered a firearm under the state’s weapon
laws, determining that it is not.

Furthermore, the decision overturned a ruling by the Minnesota Court of
Appeals and reversed the conviction of a Ramsey County man. Since 1977,
the state’s two appellate courts has, again and again, agreed with
the Legislature that a BB gun is a firearm when it is involved in different crimes.

David Lee Haywood, 38, who had been convicted of a felony drug crime in
2005, was discovered in possession of a BB gun by police during a traffic
stop in 2013. Haywood owned a Walther CP99 Compact .177-caliber BB gun
- resembling a standard Walther P99k handgun, according to court documents
- which was located in his car’s glove compartment. Law enforcement
discovered that Haywood had violated a no-contact order filed on behalf
of a woman who was a passenger in the vehicle, discovering the BB gun
during the mandatory search.

Throughout his trial on the weapons charge, the jury had been informed
that a BB gun is classified as a firearm according to Minnesota state
law. In the Appeals Court, a 1977 state Supreme court case of an armed
robbery - in which the defendant used a BB gun during the commission of
the crime - was cited and upheld Haywood’s conviction.

However, Minnesota Supreme Court disagreed. The court had argued that the
plain meaning of “firearm” does not include an air-powered
BB gun, ruling the true definition of a firearm as a weapon from which
a shot is discharged by gunpowder.

Haywood is expected to be released from prison in August.

If you were recently arrested and charged with a weapons crime in Minnesota,
contact Brockton D. Hunter P.A. and schedule a consultation with our Minneapolis
criminal defense attorney today.